The chief of staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, Major General Mohammad Hossein Baqeri reportedly warned the United States on Tuesday that, just as Iranian President Hassan Rouhani warned American President Donald Trump, threatening Iran would result in an “unimaginable” response that the U.S. will “regret.”
According to Iran’s state-run Fars News agency, Baqeri said:
As correctly stated in the remarks of our honorable president, the enemies, especially the U.S., whose deployment centers and interests are accessed by the Islamic Republic of Iran’s overt and covert defense power should not play with lion’s tail otherwise they will be given a strong, unimaginable and regretting response at a very vast extent in the region and the world.
Ironically, General Baqeri went on to say that Iran is a peace-loving country and has never started any wars against other nations. “Iran, as the superior power in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, has always guaranteed security of shipping in the vital waterway and the global economy and enjoys the power to make any move (it desires) in this region,” Baqeri reportedly said.
While Iran has had a relatively peaceful history prior to the Islamic Revolution of 1979, the current government has been responsible for the export of terrorism throughout the region with its support for Houthi rebels in Libya, Hezbollah in Lebanon, its support for Hamas in the Palestinian territories, and its stalwart support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
The Shi’ite-majority region has also sowed conflict in the Muslim world, specifically as it pertains to its Sunni nemesis Saudi Arabia.
On Monday, Fars News Agency claimed in a “report” that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) is planning a coup to overthrow his father.
The report arrived on the heels of a powerfully worded speech by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Sunday during which Pompeo warned Iran that America would provide even greater support for Iranian protesters.
The tension between Presidents Donald Trump and Hassan Rouhani also escalated to new levels this week after Rouhani warned Trump that “war with Iran is the mother of all wars” and cautioned, “Mr. Trump! Do not play with the lion’s tail, (because) you’ll regret it. You are unable to provoke the Iranian nation against Iran’s security and interests.”
In response to this, Trump tweeted, “Never, ever threaten the United States again or you will suffer the consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before.”
Adelle Nazarian is a politics and national security reporter for Breitbart News. Follow her on Facebook and Twitter.